Reaching 1,000 SOTA Activator Points: My Path to Mountain Goat

I am not afraid of hard work. I actually enjoy it. Not that I go looking for hard things to do—I just don’t avoid them if they’re needed to reach a goal I’m after.

Reaching 1,000 activator points under Summits On The Air (SOTA) is different from taking on a single hard task. It takes persistence, commitment, resolve, and focus. While some hams are able to knock out the achievement and gain the coveted SOTA Goat status, I took a longer path. I recall hitting those hundred-point milestones—200, 400, 500 points. Those seemed to just appear. The last 500 took some doing. But here in the early part of 2026, I found myself at the threshold of 1,000 points, thanks in part to over 200 winter bonus points earned along the way.

Reaching this point is not about achieving something. It is definitely not my finish line. When I look back at the path this specific niche of ham radio has led me down, I am extremely grateful to everyone who has encouraged and supported me over the past 12 and a half years. The most important of those people are my family. My wife and kids have gone above and beyond to give me the opportunity to spend time away from them out in the woods pursuing this goal. They have joined me on many activations, though I know I sometimes spoiled the fun by pushing for longer hikes or higher summits than they wanted to take on.

For a while this spring, I was sitting at 999 points. It was an odd feeling. While I knew the goal was one activation away, I felt no urgency. I just wanted the right time and the right summit to earn my Goat. So for my summit choice, I picked South Scratchgravel Hills (W7M/CL-182). It was the first summit I hiked with my youngest son after we moved to Helena in 2020. Since then, trail crews have been busy making improvements—adding routes and even placing a new picnic table at the summit to rest and enjoy the often shrouded views of the surrounding valley and mountainous backdrops.

It was a perfect afternoon for an activation. Mostly sunny, no wind, and just the faintest snow falling now and then. In other words, a beautiful day for radio. On 2 meters, the usual local crowd helped me get things going, with Bill, N7MSI, first in my log (again), followed by Rob, AE7AP; Stacy, KK7CJV in Belgrade; and then Devon, AJ7JO, as my fourth contact to make the activation official.

With the pressure off, I had fun working the rest on 2 meters before moving to 40 meters CW, then 20 meters CW. As the pile slowed down, I didn’t want the activation to end. On a whim, I jumped to 15 meters and, to my luck, landed two DX contacts—JH1MXV and ZL1TM. Both caught me by surprise, and I found myself reeling to process those exotic callsigns my ears were hearing. Thankfully, I did, and it made for a great end to a great activation with 37 QSOs.

I must also thank all the SOTA chasers. Without them, it would just be me talking to myself from a summit. I am honored to share each summit’s points—and the sense of mountain-born adventure—with those chasers.

SOTA, to me, embodies the heart of ham radio. It is community, adventure, technically challenging, and, in my opinion, very rewarding. There are so many places SOTA has given me the opportunity to visit that I would never have seen otherwise. The more I get to see this great world we inhabit, the more grateful I am for it.

Here’s to the next 1,000 points. I’m on the path, and the view to that next summit looks amazing.

73 and Baaaaaa,

Allen ~ KH7AL